Cognitive Science / Deborah Burke
Elusive Words

By Cynthia Peters

Professor Deborah Burke’s newest research on the neural basis of word-finding failure—otherwise known as tip-of the-tongue (TOT) experiences—pinpoints for the first time an association between a region in the brain and the rise in TOTs.

The study involved magnetic resonance images of healthy participants between 19 and 88 years old, along with a non-verbal test of cognitive ability. Results showed tip-of-the-tongue experiences increased with age and with grey matter atrophy in the left insula, an area implicated in phonological production. TOTs were related to insula atrophy even when the age effects are removed.

“The good news is that other areas of the brain may pick up the impaired functions,’’ says Burke. “The best way to strengthen the connections between the meanings and sounds of words is to exercise your language skills.

“I urge older adults to do things like read aloud, to talk to people at dinner and play games like Scrabble instead of games like bingo and bridge. If you are in a tip-of-the-tongue state, saying the sounds that come to you out loud may help you find the word.”

Burke is a professor of psychology and linguistics and cognitive science. The article was co-authored with Meredith Shafto ’96, Phyllis P. Tam ’04, Emmanuel A. Stamatakis and Lorraine Tyler.